KISS is London’s No. 1 commercial station

For the first time in history, KISS has the biggest reach of any commercial radio station in London, overtaking Capital, Magic and Heart.

Bauer’s dance music station has typically been in the Top 4 in recent years on reach, but has never quite taken the top spot until now. Figures for Q4, 2014 show KISS with 1.912m, just above Capital with 1.869m, Heart with 1.783m and Magic with 1.763m listeners. So it’s close, but KISS just manages to beat the competition in the capital.

However, it’s a different story when looking at Total Hours. Heart has recovered from a disastrous book last quarter to gain its best in recent history, with 13m (up from 8m last quarter) putting it in the lead. LBC is in second place with 11m and in third place is KISS with 10m, whilst Magic is on 9m and Capital on 8.5m.

Of course the BBC rules the waves in London though, making the Top 10 of all radio stations available in London look like this:

BBC Radio 4 – 2.827m

BBC Radio 2 – 2.228m

KISS – 1.912m

Capital FM – 1.869m

Heart London – 1.783m

Magic – 1.763

BBC Radio 1 – 1.663

Classic FM – 1.391

BBC 5 live – 1.287

LBC – 1.091m

Dee Ford, Group Managing Director Radio, Bauer Media, said: “Our distinctive station formats are showing significant growth, even before our new radio strategy has kicked in. Our KISS brand is storming ahead in London, our digital-only brands underline our commitment to digital radio and that we are a strong bidder for the second National digital multiplex”.